Legal Sea Foods - Chicago

Legal Sea Foods in downtown Chicago offers a visually appealing dining experience with its beautiful nautical decor. My recent visit happened to coincide with Restaurant Week, which I took advantage of. The prix fixe menu offered a delicious three-course meal: creamy New England clam chowder, flavorful shrimp scampi, and a classic Boston cream pie. While the food was good, though not the best I've had, it was certainly enjoyable. The service started out wonderfully. Our server was personable and attentive, likely due to the fact that we were one of only two tables occupied at the time. However, as more patrons arrived, the service noticeably declined. We found ourselves having to wave our server down repeatedly and practically remind him of our needs, including getting our bill. This lapse in attentiveness was disappointing. Overall, Legal Sea Foods provides a pleasant ambiance and decent seafood. While I enjoyed my meal, I wouldn't go out of my way to dine here again. It's a solid option, especially during Restaurant Week, but not a standout seafood experience.

Ah, restaurant week—the perfect time to explore new dining spots. Or so I thought. Our first stop set the tone, and let’s just say, it was a tone I wish I could mute. I get that substitutions aren’t allowed, but maybe, just maybe, a seafood restaurant should have a menu that doesn’t rely on a deep fryer for 70% of its offerings? Just a thought. The appetizers? A real rollercoaster (but the kind that mostly goes downhill). Popcorn shrimp—so forgettable I almost forgot I ate it. Caesar salad—apparently, anchovies are optional at a seafood place now, and instead of croutons, we got something that felt like an afterthought from a breadbasket. The mains? The salmon had potential but decided to embrace its dry personality, and the salt & vinegar crusted cod? More like overcooked and underwhelming. At least the desserts swooped in like a last-minute redemption arc—the Boston cream pie was the star of the show, while the cheesecake was… fine, I think? Service started off promising but lost its enthusiasm halfway through, even though the place wasn’t exactly bustling. Maybe they sensed our disappointment and slowly backed away? Hard to blame them. Not the worst meal ever, but definitely not the best way to kick off restaurant week. On to the next!"

Went there for restaurant week menu. Got there early and got oysters at happy hour price, which is great. Cod is pretty good but not amazing, Boston cream pie is top line. But the popcorn shrimp is a scam. I got the concept and it's clever. But in the menu it's a $17 dish with a dozen small shrimps and the cheapest popcorn you can get. And the popcorn box makes the dish look so cheap. Chicago has some of the best popcorns and I think if they upgrade the popcorn it won't be such a blow to the whole experience.

Lovely that Chicago got Legal Seafood! Love their clam chowder. Great deals for Tuesdays (oysters for $1 each) and in September 2024 they had a $25 lobster night! If you sign up for their rewards you can get $10 off or a free bowl of clam chowder. The place is beautiful bc it’s right on the river. Amazing romantic views. New and huge. Lots of comfortable seats. Great staff good food. Sometimes a bit salty but I’m sure you can ask for low salt for some items.

After seeing numerous poor reviews we were not sure if we should go. Saturday night 6pm and there were a lot of empty tables, worrying for a new establishment on the river. We were seated and then left. It wasn’t that there no staff, they were just looking like we were not there responsibility. Eventually our server arrived apologizing for a communication issue. She took our drink order and was gone. It then took ages to get them. Apparently the bar was backed up but any of the other 5 servers standing around could have grabbed some water jugs and filled our glasses. Then another server that we had noticed was running around dealing with customers asked if we were ok. At that point our server arrived with the drinks. Thankfully everything improved from that point onwards! The white sangria is delicious and my husbands old fashioned was good. We ordered the seafood tower for 2 which at $48 is a great price. The lobster was delicious and huge shrimp tasty. We also ordered a dozen oysters, amazing. We had a cup of clam chowder and lobster bisque. I am a bisque girl but the chowder was the summer here by far. My husband ordered the blackened trout and I had the salt and vinegar crusted cod. Both were perfectly cooked, hot and tasty. As it was his birthday we got a dessert on the house. The Boston cream pie did not disappoint but we were too stuffed to finish it fully. Our server Yazzy was a delightful lady and regularly checked on us once we started our meal. Overall I would say don’t let the reviews stop you. This place has great food, it needs to focus on the staff that are not team players but the seasoned servers stand out. I would say it is great value for money and definitely worth a trip.

Our server John P, was extremely friendly and informative. Chef Nick assisted our server Chris with bringing out the food, and to say hello. The table behind us had a question about an item on the menu, the chef went over to help the ladies. Something I rarely see. Everyones food was cooked to perfection. Highly recommend the lobster roll and cheesecake, with an ice cold refreshing coke.

My wife is a Boston native so we've experienced the Boston location several times. Held the same standard for the Chicago location. Unfortunately, this visit did not meet our expectations. Had a 9pm reservation on a Friday. Restaurant wasn't busy at all but we felt rushed in and out. Waitress actually stood over us and waited for us to pay as if she had better places to be. Very bad service. Will most likely take our money elsewhere when dining downtown in the future.

Went here back in September all week and then a few days ago and I need to write this review. My favorite dish is their Octopus appetizer and the Baked Anna's Way Fish Entree. I could eat their octopus every day 🙌We've always had amazing service.

loved the environment friendly staff and such great food overall I will definitely be back. I remember it from back home in Boston

It's very good! I had Cod with Brussels Sprouts and Broccoli Beautiful view overlooking the Chicago River The prices were as you would expect The service was good to But nothing was wow

Legal Sea Foods in downtown Chicago offers a visually appealing dining experience with its beautiful nautical decor. My recent visit happened to coincide with Restaurant Week, which I took advantage of. The prix fixe menu offered a delicious three-course meal: creamy New England clam chowder, flavorful shrimp scampi, and a classic Boston cream pie. While the food was good, though not the best I've had, it was certainly enjoyable. The service started out wonderfully. Our server was personable and attentive, likely due to the fact that we were one of only two tables occupied at the time. However, as more patrons arrived, the service noticeably declined. We found ourselves having to wave our server down repeatedly and practically remind him of our needs, including getting our bill. This lapse in attentiveness was disappointing. Overall, Legal Sea Foods provides a pleasant ambiance and decent seafood. While I enjoyed my meal, I wouldn't go out of my way to dine here again. It's a solid option, especially during Restaurant Week, but not a standout seafood experience.

Came here on a Tuesday for their happy hour special. The food was okay ~ the service was very very lacking. The place itself was very nice upon walking in and we were immediately seated and told the bartender would take care of us. 10 minutes go by and a server eventually comes to attend to our table. We asked if they had a happy hour menu which she responded yes, but then proceeded to verbally say everything instead of giving us the menu. We were then immediately asked what we wanted to order (note that it was our first time here, we had no idea what was on the menu and couldn't remember everything). We ordered shrimp, clams, and oysters. After ordering, we waited around 40 minutes to get our food. We saw other tables who ordered after us get theirs before us.. not too sure what was going on. We then also heard that there was different types of oysters that we could've ordered and when we asked our waitress, she told us that she "just put half and half of the two most popular oysters". We did not get a choice which frustrated our table. After receiving our food, 3 out of 12 of the oysters looked like there was barely an oyster in it. The shrimp and clams were great. After finishing eating, we sat for 10+ minutes without anyone stopping by so we had to flag down the bartender for the check. We probably would've tried the chowder or desert or drinks if we had better service but was just tired by that point.

We had a great and attentive server during our dinner service. We started off our meal with 3 appetizers - an order of oysters, bang bang cauliflower and poke nachos. I enjoyed every dish, especially the poke nachos. I loved the fact that they used shrimp crackers instead of the usual chips that most places use. It allowed the flavor of the tuna to really stick out and made the dish a lot lighter. As for my main entree, I had the cioppino - it was a very generous serving and contained all the usual shellfish. My only critique is that I wish there was more broth for the bread. We also enjoyed a couple of cocktails at the recommendation of our waiter and took turns trying out all our different drinks. Overall great dinner!

Again, as always, my experience. A bit hidden on main floor. I went for their Friday Fish & Chips $15 special . I was first person at 11:30am, and a bit shocked not many people there when I left at 12:30. Anna was hostess who greeted me and seated me. Very nice. Allergy awareness: Carla came by as my server and I told her I have quite a few allergies. A bit off putting when she did not take notes just basically asked what they were. So, to simplify, I just categorized vs naming them. The food: I had an offer for a free cup of clam chowder but I opted for a bowl. $9 vs. $11... $2 difference, but wait until the end where Carla charged me an extra $3. Careless accident or do I need to watch my receipt closely here? The soup came out with buns and butter. So good. One of the BEST Clam Chowders I've ever had... no joke. Excellent and worth the $11. I was actually full. Here comes my fish and chips. (Mind you, I rarely, if ever, eat deep-fried foods. Even fries.) Beautiful. Two huge pieces served over thick cut fries and a small cole slaw. I started on Coleslaw. It was fresh but bland. Extremely bland. I'm not sure if they missed vinegar or something, I could not eat it. But, it was not old, just did not like it. The fish. Carla said it is a pollock. The batter was perfect. Seasoning awesome and the fish was super flaky. Outright delish. The fries were good but just fries. It's a fish place, not In-and-Out Burger. Doggy bags: Their packages for doggy bags were much more solid in a foil/tin bottom containers, but I just don't prefer this type of material. (Can't make everyone happy, lol.) I did meet one of the managers, Dino. So nice and very great representative of the company. I felt very welcomed by him. Look, the fish meal was worth $15, but full-price of $29, hmmmm. The soup bowl ($11, not $12. Look at the menu photos i took same day) was INCREDIBLE and I really want to eat it again really soon!! I would return. I've tried the fish fry special, one and done on that. (If you love fried foods you may want to try it. ) Pretty place. COOL GLASSWARE! I want these for my own home! NOTE TO MANAGEMENT: Clean the tables better. Mine still had food from what had to have been the day before. Teach the servers to be careful on the bill. My $1 x any of the daily "errors" in Legal Seagood's favor adds up. All in all, nice experience. I can't recommend this soup enough. Merci beaucoup

Went to Chicago for the Usher concert and took care of some business there as well. My colleague and I enjoyed lunch at Legal Sea Foods. The service was EXCELLENT, outside view was awesome and the food was flavorful and fresh. Our waiter Sergio was amazing and very attentive... great personality! Definitely a place you should dine while in Chicago!

Was my first meal of the new year. The host let me know when I walked in it was Happy Hour. Sat a table in bar area and there was a college football playoff on. Ordered an Allagash White, calamari, tuna burger and old fashioned. The bartender is funny and personable. Pleased we have this location in Chicago. I enjoy eating at Legal Seafood whenever I'm in Boston.

Came in for Happy Hour which is from 3-6PM at the bar. My friends both ordered Vino Bianco Frizzante Seco and I ordered a non-alcoholic drink called the Blackberry Burlesque. It was a little sweet and a little tart. We also ordered 2 dozen oysters, a dozen clams and a dozen shrimps. The bartender forgot to drop off our bread and we were short 1 dozen oysters. She quickly double checked that they were entered and delivered the missing oysters to us. Can't beat this deal and its available 7 days a week!

The food was excellent, service fantastic, and our server Georgie was the best!!! Highly recommend.

Legal Seafoods has an unbeatable location with its beautiful patio overlooking the Chicago River. The open-air seating offers a perfect spot to relax and enjoy the fresh air. We started with some sangria, which was refreshing and enjoyable. The clam chowder followed, and it was easily the highlight of the meal--fresh, creamy, and full of flavor. Unfortunately, the rest of the meal didn't measure up. The waitress recommended that the tuna burger be served rare, but I opted for medium-rare. When it arrived, it was extremely well done--almost burnt. The basic toppings of lettuce and tomato didn't do much to improve the experience, making it a bit of a disappointment. The crispy fish sandwich was decent, and a generic burger we ordered was alright as well. The menu, overall, was less exciting than expected. While the location is fantastic, the food left much to be desired. I would recommend this location for drinks along the river.

Perfect location right on the Chicago river, with both indoor and outdoor seating. This place is huge! The upstairs has its own bar area, and the downstairs bar & restaurant is gigantic. Since they are brand new, I think they are still scaling up with servers, etc. because there were no reservations available online but plenty of open seating. I really liked how the restaurant was styled and the lively ambiance. Even though we weren't able to sit on the patio, we snagged a table adjacent that had the indoor/outdoor feel with a view of the river. As far as food, their menu is also gigantic and I had a hard time choosing from all the options, but settled on the fish tacos (starter) since I wasn't crazy hungry. They ended up being delicious and I would definitely order them again! On the other hand, I was disappointed to see only one non-alcoholic cocktail on the menu called All Day Rose, which tasted like a sugary fruit punch. Overall, service was ok - I had read other reviews from when they were just opening and finding their feet so my expectations were low but I felt the effort was there. All in all, we had a nice time and a nice meal - Legal Sea Foods is definitely a welcome addition to the river dining lineup.

The restaurant has not had a grand opening yet, but is open. I visited on a beautiful sunny day for lunch. The service was outstanding, and we had a nice seat on the river. We had fried calamari and 2 Sushi rolls. Everything tasted good and fresh. Our dessert was a little disappointing, as it came out still frozen. We were not able to eat most of it. I will go back once the restaurant has its official opening.

Legal Seafood is known to be a big deal in Boston, which I didn't know until my friend from Boston Mass informed me. Stepped in last night to check it out and the menu looks great! HOWEVER to be perfectly fair, they are still in a soft opening period and are NOT at all prepared to open. I meant it! Management should strongly consider delaying the Grand Opening next week. Staff does not even know the menu or let alone know to give utencils and napkins until you ask. The scallop roll sushi took 40 minutes to come out and presentation was sad and sloppy. Was not flammed, just raw and tasted funky. For the main, I ordered a seared ahi tuna burger with a side of wedge potato fries and asked to substitute the sauce due to a bell pepper allergy. The ahi burger came out before the sushi roll, was burnt to a crisp, cold soggy fries and had a side of oilve oil, wierd!! It was unedible and hard like a rock! C'mon, this can't be legal for seafood! Lol and what's with the olive oil? Is that supposed to be a substitute for remulade or do the folks in the Kitchen still need training? Oddly the manager said they can't do a seared tuna because of the Ahi. This tells me it isn't high enough quality of tuna to serve seared. Are you or are you not a serious seafood establishment? With a location as PRIME as this, at the base level of Marina Towers overlooking the Riverfront the food and quality of a dinning experience needs to be TOP NOTCH. This isn't it - yet! My advice is give them time to sort out these issues. Gave two stars because the waitress was really trying and I do want to see this place turn my first impression around.

I had such high hopes for this place but those were quickly dashed. Here are a few of the lowlights: 1. Ordered mocktail which was supposed to be a NA Sparkling Rose, what came was cranberry juice with sparkling water in a goblet sized wine glass. I am very astute on NA wines, mocktails etc so please DO NOT try to fool me. 2. The waitress had no idea what anything was and could not answer any questions about the menu 3. We ordered oysters and our entrees and instead of bringing out the oysters first they brought everything together. Did not give an explanation of which oyster was which. Two of our entrees were wrong so they had to be sent back 4. When we got our bill - the waitress gave us the wrong one with only one entree on it. Our group informed her since we didn't want any bad karma following us around by not paying what we owed. The view is spectacular and that is the only positive I can give about this place. One person in my group lives in Marina Towers and has sent many people to this place but he will no longer be doing that. He has given it a few tries but when he tried to speak to a manager about his chowder being cold every time he came in, the manager was too engrossed in the sports game on tv to listen. Even with the view, I expect this place to last another 3 months tops. Zero stars from me but I had to click one!

A big fan in Boston and it's getting better here. Our 2nd visit especially since it was $1 oyster night. Service is still sporadic but the food was much better. We ordered 2 dozen of oysters but we had to remind them to bring the second dozen. The oysters were outstanding but we had to ask for lemons and hot sauce. I ordered the clam chowder but had to remind them to bring it. I also had the fish and chips, which was very good, but had to ask for ketchup for the fries. My wife had the dragon roll which was also very good. The wine selection is good with a nice variety by the glass. The room is spacious and not jammed up against other diners. The window tables over the river are spectacular!

Lovely that Chicago got Legal Seafood! Love their clam chowder. Great deals for Tuesdays (oysters for $1 each) and in September 2024 they had a $25 lobster night! If you sign up for their rewards you can get $10 off or a free bowl of clam chowder. The place is beautiful bc it's right on the river. Amazing romantic views. New and huge. Lots of comfortable seats. Great staff good food. Sometimes a bit salty but I'm sure you can ask for low salt for some items.

Went for lunch on a weekday, the restaurant was fairly empty (but is huge!). We requested to sit outside for a great view of the river, was lovely to see all the boats go by. Very large menu but we went with the lunch specials: $20 for a smaller lobster roll, clam chowder (supposedly served at every presidential inauguration!), coleslaw & fries. Their kids menu also has decent portions (got the fish & fries with applesauce). The chowder was good, I personally didn't care much for the lobster roll (but can't say I'm a huge fan of lobster). I would go back to try other things in the menu & to enjoy the view!

To be honest, the bad reviews would usually scare me.. but they had oyster fest for the month of October, which means $1 oysters. A deal is a deal, and I took it upon myself to close my eyes and give this place a try, and I was pleasantly surprised! I truly think this place deserves more credit than what it has been given... like yes, was the food the most amazing food I've ever had? But was it really as bad as what people said? No. Not at all! I think this place probably had quite a few growing pains, which I am sure is normal to get a place up and running... The service was actually pretty good, considering they were extra busy for the oyster event. Our waitress kept checking in on us, and the manager even came to check on us as well. The ambiance was quite nice. Beautiful views of the water and the city. The food: Oysters: 4.5/5: pretty good. Did not taste fishy or unfresh. Quite fresh especially given our Chicago standards are not that high for oysters Clam chowder: 4.6/5: one of the best bowls of clam chowder I've had in the city. Really nice, hearty, creamy.. good amount of clams, cream, and potatoes Crab cake combo: 3.8/5- not bad. Pretty decent. Was it the best thing ever? No. But it was good. One of the reviews I read said it was too salty, but I thought it was fine. I liked the scallops and crab cake the best in this combo. Cioppino: 3.5/5- it was ok. A bit bland, but not bad. Still nice. Tomato sauce. Not heavy. Overall, I would go back for their specials. Why not?

I really wanted this to go better than it did. My party of 2 came on a Tuesday night and things that went well: - sat at the bar and the bartenders were engaging and helpful with recommendations - we had a great espresso martini (2 actually) and an old fashioned - aesthetics of restaurant are really pretty - clam chowder is bangin Not good: -wait times - it took FOREVER - for our oysters. Like literally 45 min wait. - restaurant ran out of lemons - how does that happen at a seafood restaurant

Place is evocative of the surrounding area which is mundane river north establishments. Service however was very attentive & they even gave me a hand signed card for a bday celebration. I was told that the scallop de jonghe was big enough for an entree & nothing could be further from the truth so much so that I still ordered an additional entree. Speaking of the scallop appetizer it tasted like bottled grocery store gravy.y entree the Cajun fish sandwich was ok. Twas hefty to say the least & served with a damn near five guys portion of fries. Drink was ok. View is nice but be aware that birds will be everywhere.

I was excited to hear the legal seafood was coming to the Chicago area since I am familiar with them from the East Coast DMV area. The restaurant is an excellent location right off the river, which gives the water sea field so the ambience is great. It looks very new. As far as service I would just say that the service was OK there seem to be a lot of issues to get a table. I had a reservation and requested a booth, but most of their booths are bigger. I was told that they had larger parties coming in, which is fine, but there was literally maybe four groups dining. Also my party did not plan to stay that long. Once we finally got a table and ordered, I got the clam chowder, which is something I'd love to get always the popcorn, shrimp and a dragon roll. Value and taste wise I just thought the food was OK. The sushi was actually superb but for the popcorn shrimp that is mixed in with popcorn and the clam chowder the food was okay. I would definitely come back for sushi and I still need to try the entrées, but overall they were cool.

4.5 stars!!! All around great experience. My boyfriend and I happened to be on the Riverwalk when we noticed this restaurant was finally open, and we figured we'd stop in for a drink and oysters. No wait, which is surprising...but I realized they only just opened a few weeks ago. We sat outside on the long patio. Very intimate setting. Gorgeous view of the river and surrounding buildings in the city. They brought out a light when it got dark outside, free warm bread and butter, and the water glasses were cute and easy to hold (which is important when it's hot outside). Our server, Veronica, was super friendly, knowledgeable, loves her job, and is proud of the company. She let us know they are Boston based and convinced us to get a dozen oysters instead of 6 because they were on special for $2/oyser. We were VERY happy she did, because the oysters were hella fresh & chilled. We ordered espresso martinis which were delicious. We noticed the HALF POUND lobster roll was listed as one of their special dishes, and OH BOY it wad fireeeee. We chose the warm butter version and split it between both of us. It was HUGE and only $43 (see picture). Best bang for your buck. It's definitely no RPM Seafood lobster roll, but the amount of lobster we got was insane! We also appreciated the fries and coleslaw that came with it. The coleslaw paired very well with the lobster roll. Salt water taffy came with our check, for a perfect ending to our meal. Will definitely go again to try more items on the menu!

Wanted this so much to be good and like the originals out East. Sadly it fell very short. Went there as a party of 9 for a birthday dinner at 6pm. Was sat in what appeared to be a back party room away from the main dining room. The room had a partition pulled that hid the view of the river that we were hoping to get. Looking around the main dining room, this space seemed to be the only area for a large party. Lets start with the positives : Cocktails were good. Warm sourdough rolls were delicious . Party room was very quiet, because we were the only ones in it. Erica was our server and very attentive and thoughtful. The salad that came with the crab cake and crab cake entree was yummy. Now on to the negatives: We may have been in a quite space for our table, except for the staff that came in and out of the room to check their phones, have a sip of a drink, randomly walk in then walk out. Seems like the space was used for a breakroom, the way people kept coming in. The first sign that things weren't goin well was the chowder. We had to send it back for tasting sour, it had turned. Erica was kind and took it back right away and had it remedied. The 2nd soup came out, not sour, tasted better, but cold. Erica took it back again and returned with hot soup. Next, one sushi order was super delayed and came after our entree. We had asked to cancel it, as it defeated the purpose of ordering it if it came out with our entree. We were provided a complimentary sushi, due to the delay. The fried dishes that came: calamari, fish/chips, hot honey chicken dish were extremely oily and the crabcake was dry. Next, the ramen bowl was deceiving...no pork available, and didn't mention that it came with kimchi, which in my opinion is a very acquired flavor profile and both individuals who ordered it, don't like kimchi. They gave it a shot, but the ramen wasn't very ramen-like and the omission of kimchi on the menu was the deal breaker in the overall satisfaction of the dish. Lastly, an employee was smoking on the steps in front of the restaurant, near a sign that says smoking isn't permitted within 15 feet of the entrance of the restaurant. In my opinion, it isn't a good look. We finally finished almost 2.5 hrs after it all began and unfortunately walked away disappointed in our dinner out. Sadly, I felt I had to share this experience. It was just too many misses in a dining experience. And for the amount of money that we spent, it should have been better. Erica was very kind, but I almost felt bad that she had to do much service recovery for things that weren't her mistakes.

I usually give the restaurant more than a few days after opening, but I've been antsy to try this place in Boston and was excited something was finally taking over this prime location on the river. We got a nice seat on the balcony overlooking the river, and this was so nice to see all the boats go by and people watch. Our waitress was so sweet but clearly hadn't been fully trained yet as she was unfamiliar with the menu, etc. My mini carafe of wine didn't even come with a wine glass until I asked for it. We wanted to share some appetizers and were informed mistakenly that the crab cake appetizer comes with two, which would have been enough to split between the four of us. However, it only comes with one- this was delicious though just not a big enough appetizer especially for the price. We also shared the torched scallop roll, but this came out un-torched. Once they did bring out the dish made properly though it was tasty. The grilled cod loin is not worth your money, as the specialty entrees are the same price and bigger portioned and more flavorful. I liked the side of broccoli and Cole slaw (which they forgot to bring out initially). Like I said, my grandma's salt and vinegar crusted cod was much better than mine. The haddock off the specialty entree was also delicious. The linguine with clams, however, was absolutely inedible - the noodles were soggy and the sauce tasted off and rotten. I do think this place has a lot of potential, and the staff was very accommodating with all the mistakes. Just some hit and misses with the food as well!

For the location you would expect better. The dining experience needs improvement. The wait staff interacted with each other as if you're not there dining. Loud talking and cursing in ear shot of dining customers was just bewildering to me. I ordered an appetizer and the shrimp were cold. I sat at the bar and drinks were good but the bartender appeared unfamiliar with the space. Again, it's a prime location so you'd expect better or the best.

Excellent service and fantastic patio on the river. The food was delicious. The GF fish and chips is something I don't get often and it was cooked perfectly. Highly recommend the tomato and burrata salad.

Took one of my friends here for her birthday. The food, service and atmosphere was great. The window view was phenomenal. They have an extensive gluten free menu. The Lobster Roll, Calamari, Fishermans Platter and Fish/Chips were great. Dino/Manager was AWESOME. Dino went beyond to assist and accommodate us. Great attitude, very attentive and approachable. Highly recommended and will be going her again.

Just randomly stopped for a cocktail and apps bc we had a later reservation down the street and I love going whenever I'm in Boston. The crab cake was amazing!!!

Service was not only snail slow, but they had no idea who ordered what or which table is which. I had 2 items brought over that wasn't ordered and the chowder forgotten. I sat there for 1 hour and only ordered 2 dozen oysters and a bowl of clam chowder. None of these items needed to be made to order so why did it take so long. Noise level is a little loud but that's just people chatting and enjoying conversation. Only came for the October Tuesday $1 oyster. Will never come back.

My husband and I came here recently and had outstanding experience. We had the Tuna Tartare, Lobster Roll, & Lobster bake. Everything tasted fresh & delicious. You can tell the seafood is sourced directly from the east coast. When you walk in the establishment looks beautiful, & they have an upstairs bar on street level, right in the river. We sat at the bar, & our bartender made sure we were taken care of all evening, great service! Can't wait to be back & enjoy their beautiful patio area in our favorite area in the city.

Our group of 5 had a wonderful early dinner before seeing a play. Our server Veronica was friendly and helpful and our food came out quickly. We had two kids in our group and they have the best kids menu I have seen in the city - a huge selection, good size portions and only $9. The Moulin Rouge drink was very good. I had the crab roll and wished there were bigger pieces of crab, but the roll and the French fries were delicious. Portions were large for adults as well. Overall worth a try!

I'm sorry but good oysters are enough for a good review. Went for Tuesday Oyster day, took 45min for our first 24 oysters, 50+ for the second 24 oysters, the fries even came later than the first 24 oysters, and not crispy enough, and the ketchup we requested never came. I totally understand that a lot of ppl were ordering oysters that day, but that's just terrible management. The restaurant should totally expect the order amount and could've been more prepared. Servers rarely showed up, super busy, no one added our water, etc. The stars are only for the good oysters, overall experience was really bad.

Not the leagal seafood I know from years past. Really a missed opportunity for this restaurant. I ordered seabass. Looked like cod. 41 dollars for cod with two sides. But I got a huge amount of mushrooms and 3 frys. Kinda odd. Drinks overly sweet. Won't be going back. Have a strong feeling this restaurant will not last.

After seeing numerous poor reviews we were not sure if we should go. Saturday night 6pm and there were a lot of empty tables, worrying for a new establishment on the river. We were seated and then left. It wasn't that there no staff, they were just looking like we were not there responsibility. Eventually our server arrived apologizing for a communication issue. She took our drink order and was gone. It then took ages to get them. Apparently the bar was backed up but any of the other 5 servers standing around could have grabbed some water jugs and filled our glasses. Then another server that we had noticed was running around dealing with customers asked if we were ok. At that point our server arrived with the drinks. Thankfully everything improved from that point onwards! The white sangria is delicious and my husbands old fashioned was good. We ordered the seafood tower for 2 which at $48 is a great price. The lobster was delicious and huge shrimp tasty. We also ordered a dozen oysters, amazing. We had a cup of clam chowder and lobster bisque. I am a bisque girl but the chowder was the summer here by far. My husband ordered the blackened trout and I had the salt and vinegar crusted cod. Both were perfectly cooked, hot and tasty. As it was his birthday we got a dessert on the house. The Boston cream pie did not disappoint but we were too stuffed to finish it fully. Our server Yazzy was a delightful lady and regularly checked on us once we started our meal. Overall I would say don't let the reviews stop you. This place has great food, it needs to focus on the staff that are not team players but the seasoned servers stand out. I would say it is great value for money and definitely worth a trip

Great staff and great food. I love the view of the Chicago River. I would recommend this restaurant for date night.

Great place. Our server, Chris P, was the best. Table on the water was so pretty overlooking the city.

Veronica gave us the BEST service. We ordered alllll the things... oysters, chowder, bisque, rolls, and ciopinno. THANK You.

My wife and I came here on the 1st night of our 13th wedding anniversary. We were surprised as too how open, friendly and welcoming the staff and ambiance was. We sat at a table adjacent to the doors to their outdoor space overlooking the river! NICEEEE..... Especially at night with the lights and everything. We even walked the entire Riverwalk several weeks prior and actually walked past Legal but on the other side of the river. Our server Yulia M was GREAT!. Very knowledgeable of the menu and their ingredients as I have a shrimp allergy. We started with the Fish Tacos, which were pretty freakin good!!!... We got then blackened which can be overcooked quite easily, but these WERE PERFECT!!!. You can taste all of ingredients on the taco itself; pickled red cabbage, daikon added crunch and the chipotle aioli and pico added the right amount of punch and citrus! Wow. If I could make this at home. WOW.... My wife ordered the Tuna Burger with salad. I got the Rainbow Trout w/ sauteed spinach and roasted mushrooms. EVERYTHING played EVERY WELL together!. The trout was cooked perfectly, the spinach added some brightness, and the mushrooms brought it all together, eating a bit of all-in-one bite was EXCELLENT!. For dessert my wife ordered the Key Lime Pie. I typically do not care for key lime pie, but I tasted a couple of bites and mannnn.... IT WAS PRETTY FREAKIN' GOOD!! Nice, not over-powering lime/citrus flavor. The crust was crazy crunchy but not split-your-gums-open crunchy. It was just right. We had not been to this "area" since going to Bin 36 many-many years ago. WHY did we wait so long, I am not sure. But we WILL be back. Excellent A+++. -Gone.......

I was concerned because of other reviews, but this was utterly DELICIOUS. Lobster bisque had a great sherry flavor and clam chowder was tasty, too, both full of good, fresh seafood. Lobster roll was buttery and plentiful, best ive had since Maine. and salad with blackened shrimp was fresh and I would order it again. Staff was lovely, from the hostess.to waitress. Did not feel ignored and food came fast. They may have had a hard start, but seems they got it together now. Looking forward to returning and trying new things.

Let me say service was good. I sat on the balcony and it was so cute. This restaurant is decorated nicely. Now on to the food. The chicken sandwich was not good. I didn't like the breading on it. It lacked flavor. It was such a messy meal. Eating this was not cute. The fries also were flavorless. Like, sprinkle a little salt and have them be piping hot. And what I really wanted, the key lime pie they didn't have. I really had my mouth watering for key lime pie and it was not in.

I live upstairs above this restaurant so the convenience factor is unbeatable. I've eaten here about 4 times; I waited to review it until the shakiness of opening months had leveled off. To start, about the view over the river--it's just unbeatable. Gorgeous, especially at night. One of the very best (except for those on high in tall buildings) in the city. Except for one instance, the service has always been earnest and trying hard, but in the early going it was spotty--sometimes slow, sometimes getting my order wrong (I once ordered a medium rare steak and was served a medium well (almost burnt) steak instead, for which my embarrassed server apologized earnestly and they replaced it with the correctly cooked steak ASAP). I've had really excellent, very friendly and knowledgeable service at the bar, but have occasionally had to wait and ultimately raise my hand and gesture in frustration in order to pull him/her away from conversations with colleagues at the other end of the bar. The one exception: I once ordered sushi at the bar and it was brought to me without chopsticks or napkin or soy sauce. I had the impression that my young server was either very inexperienced or an outright dunce. Also, about the sushi: it's excellent and the presentation is especially good, but the prices are high. Union Sushi, just a few blocks away, offers a delicious spicy tuna roll for $9--half the price for the same roll here at $18. Otherwise, my meals have been good--but at these prices, shouldn't they be consistently very good? The clam chowder here, as many others have noted, is just outstanding--maybe the best I've ever had. (I'm going downstairs shortly for a bowl.) One additional issue is the bread that is served here: it's really chewy, even kind of hard to tear apart into pieces. I've mentioned this to my servers every time I've eaten here, and suggested that they instead serve the sort of soft, melts-in-your-mouth bread that is served in many other upper-end restaurants in the city, and they have told me that they have no choice as this decision is made at the corporate level. I find this answer unsatisfying, especially as they seem to know that it's lousy bread but they serve it anyway. Because I live above it and I love seafood, I want this restaurant to succeed! But they need to iron out their service problems (slowness during busy nights, sometimes getting the order wrong, occasional inattentiveness at the bar), start serving better (softer, less chewy) bread, and make sushi prices more aligned with similar restaurants in the area.

Chicago doesn't know how lucky they just got. Growing up my mom used to take me to legal sea food every time we visited Boston. It was her absolute favorite restaurant and I never really understood why. I went to college in Boston and started to learn that Legal Sea Food represents not only the best of New England's seafood but also a reflection of the culture, pride and unique New England hospitality. It became MY favorite restaurant and a place my mom and I bonded over. I stopped by this location as I am in town from Los Angeles for a work trip. Today is my last day and as much as I know I should try Chicago deep dish as a last meal... I couldn't resist Legal Sea Foods. I walked over and learned that they're not yet open. I opened the doors anyway and it turned out they were in the middle of staff training. One of the managers, Steve Barstis, noticed me at the front of the restaurant and checked in with me to see if I needed anything. I told him I was a huge fan of Legal Sea Foods and that I was bummed I wouldn't get to eat at this new location before I go back to Los Angeles (there are no locations on the west coast that I'm aware of.) Steve was so awesome that he offered me to order some food to go and bring back to my hotel room. I was astounded! I haven't had their New England Clam Chowder since 2019 and I crave it often. I felt guilty asking them to do that because they were truly in the middle of training and not accepting customers. No one has ever offered something like this before. But that's why Legal Sea Food is special... every dining experience is memorable and the food is outstanding. I'm sitting here in my hotel room eating clam chowder and watching TV, texting my parents about how excited I am to have a quick taste of New England. Steve, thank you for going above and beyond. Thanks to the entire staff for being so friendly as I interrupted your training. I can't wait to see how this location will grow in the next few years and can't wait to stop by when I'm back next year for work.

Dine there last weekend. We had reservations and when we came to the host we see that like 5tables not occupied outside on patio. I ask for sitting outside. But the host told me they reserved and waiting time for outside patio 45 min. But when I call for reservations I been told that they don't except reservations for outside patio. How then that table could be reserved? The host told me they reserved for SPECIAL people. I couldn't believe what I heard... I ask how so special I should be to get reservations? Should I be white ? Black? Gay?.... I said that I will wait at the bar and I really wanted to see those SPECIAL people who will dining on that reserve tables After that another host came to us and apologized and got us a table outside It was very unpleasant experience... The service was excellent The food was good

Tuesday night on oyster day is probably busy. But just saying it probably isn't the shuckers fault they might be just busy shucking all day and night long. Maybe hire more shuckers during dollar day oysters. Their fried clam and their drinks were good otherwise and we got free dessert as compensation.

This place will be closed soon. Only thing keeping it up is that Smith&Woolensky has a stake in it. As a life long Chicago restaurant customer,this place has everything wrong with it. From poor seating,to poor food,to untrained service. 1st and LAST time I will go there,My guests and I Sampled many items from the menu,ONLY item that was Hot and Tasty was the Boston ClamChowder. That where it ends. Damn shame,great location,place looks nice. But that's it.

The food was delicious, the service was very good & the ambiance also very good. We had a lovely view of the river, bridges, tour boats and Riverwalk from our table by the window. We both had the New England clam chowder which we both now consider the best in Chicago. The fresh little neck clams were especially terrific as were the 3 kinds of oysters. We also had the warm lobster roll which was overflowing with succulent lobster chunks. Our feast also included clam strips which were excellent too. The entrance to the restaurant is not that obvious. It is down a few steps from the street on Dearborn on the west side of the west Marina city tower. Hurry up and go there and discover all the deliciousness before everyone else does!

This is a seafood restaurant that don't sell crab legs My experience wasn't that great. The salmon was undercooked the concept of seafood tower. I don't agree with.

I was sooo excited to try this place but we went to dinner tonight and had at best ok overpriced meals and food. My food was the saltiest thing I have ever eaten!!! I even told our waiter ( the only reason for 2 star review he was great ) that's it was basically inedible... fries mushy and broccoli warm but not good at all. My husband said his food was like warm and tasted like something he could have easily made at home but better!! Basically I got a $38 brown bag meal that probably would have been better from brown bag!!! Total damage was $150 for 3 ok drinks and 2 ok meals!!! While I am glad I tried this, I will definitely not be back!!!